The Powerful Purpose of Introverts ಮಾದರಿ

Day Three

How Introverts Love Well

Scriptures: 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

We live in a culture that pressures us to have more friends, likes, and followers. Yet as I look at true, soul-sustaining connection, I see a clear focus on quality, not quantity. God doesn’t tell us how much time we’re to spend with others, how many friendships we should maintain, or which social activities we must do. Instead, he describes love this way:

"Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance" (1 Cor. 13:4-7).

None of us live this list perfectly. What I want us to see is that being “a loving person” is not about popularity but rather personal behavior. It’s about how we treat each person in our path. When an expert in the law asked Jesus what it meant to love your neighbor, he replied with the parable of the Good Samaritan, a simple story about one person helping another.

I sometimes picture a system that operates on the principle of more people in my life = I’m a more loving person. I’ve heard other introverts express something similar. But love isn’t about the number of people we have in our lives, “likes” we get online, guests who come to our wedding (or funeral), or contacts in our phone. Our social schedules aren’t a measuring stick for our spirituality. If you want to grow in love, measure nothing. Instead, make one connection, have one conversation, show kindness to one person at a time—which introverts naturally do well.

Fear might tempt us to hide, but it’s not too late to show up. Insecurity might point out our imperfections, but grace invites us to come as we are. Shame might tell us to try harder, but our worth is an unearned gift.

Extend the invitation, send the text, start the conversation. Community isn’t something we find; it’s something we create one person at a time. As introverts, we love well in ways that are needed more than ever before.

Who’s one person you can connect with today and what’s one simple way you can do so?